Business Buzz: Board of Realtors gives out awards

The Medrano family home at 375 Tucker St. was awarded Yard of the Week.Craig Board of Realtors/Courtesy |

The Craig Board of Realtors awarded Yard of the Week to the Medrano family home at 375 Tucker St. in Craig, and the August Community Improvement Award to Brandon Ager of Ager Enterprises at 380 Tucker St.

Investment cooperative meeting draws crowd, support

The first meeting of those interested in the Craig Moffat County Investment Cooperative drew a crowd and a strong showing of local support.

“I was quite impressed … with the turnout and the enthusiasm of who was there,” Chris Nichols said.

Nichols and Frank Moe, acting as citizens and not in their elected roles with the City of Craig and Moffat County, respectively, led the meeting Aug. 9 at Craig City Hall.

Other CMC founding members include John Ponikvar, Vicki Burns, Kerry Moe, Neil Folks and Andy Daniels. In all, about 40 community members attended and 25 pledged support at the meeting.

The cooperative’s mission is to leverage member-owners’ investments to purchase and rejuvenate commercial properties in Craig and Moffat County. The cooperative makes long-term, stabilizing and transformative investments for the mutual benefit of member-owners and the community.

Nichols explained that the local group is basing its structure on that of the NorthEast Investment Cooperative in Minneapolis. The founding members have registered the organization with the State of Colorado as a for-profit, real estate development organization.

Anyone can participate in the “low-risk” investment at $1,000 per share. Individuals and businesses can contribute more than the cost of a share and earn higher dividends, but each contribution constitutes one vote on cooperative decisions.

“We want the individual community member to feel they have a say,” Nichols said. “We are here to revitalize Main Street Craig. This group can make things happen for our community, one building at a time.”

Nichols said the next steps include soliciting more pledges, adopting bylaws, electing a board and researching properties for the group’s first project.

The founding members are planning another meeting for early September. For more information, call Frank Moe 970-756-7109 or Chris Nichols 970-846-1815 or visit cmcinvestmentcooperative.com.

Economic development board to tour renovated Victory Motors

A tour of Victory Motors in Craig will top the agenda at the next business visit meeting of the Craig/Moffat Economic Development Partnership (CMEDP) Board of Directors. The meeting is scheduled for 4 to 5:30 p.m. Aug. 16 at Victory Motors of Craig, Inc., 2705 W. First St., Craig. Steve Maneotis and staff will provide a tour of the facility and showcase the construction project that’s nearing its end.

“I can’t wait to see the major renovations at Victory Motors and hear from Steve about the investments he’s making in our community,” CMEDP Executive Director Michelle Balleck said. “These business visit meetings are a great way for us to be out in our local companies, seeing the work they are doing, deeply understanding our economy and making decisions based on the feedback we hear from local business owners and managers.”

The CMEDP board convenes in a boardroom-style meeting quarterly — in January, April, July and October — and tours local businesses in the remaining months. CMEDP board meetings are open to the public, and anyone interested is encouraged to attend the business visit.

Registration is open for the Northwest Rural Philanthropy Days conference that will be held Sept. 27 to 29 in Craig. Registration is open until Sept. 15. The fee is $175. For more information and to register visit: http://www.NorthWestRPD.org for questions email: northwestrpd@gmail.com.

Daily Press, CMEDP solicit business news

The Craig Daily Press and Craig/Moffat Economic Development Partnership (CMEDP) have a cooperative agreement to share news from businesses and industry with the community in the “Business Buzz” section that runs each Monday in the Daily Press. The entities are seeking news items to share through the weekly section.

“This partnership give us a unique opportunity to share the positive happenings within our business community — new employees, added service lines, expanded and renovated locations, and more,” Balleck said. “There’s plenty of news to be celebrated within our community, and I am pleased to be a part of this program.”

To share news about your business or another business in Moffat County, contact Craig Daily Press Editor Thomas Martinez at 970-875-1790 or tmartinez@CraigDailyPress.com or CMEDP Executive Director Michelle Balleck at 970-620-4370 at director@cmedp.com.